Reasons to Invest in the New Workforce

Reasons to Invest in the New Workforce

Technology is allowing U.S. manufacturers of all sizes to compete on a global scale. Robot sales are at an all-time high and new types of job opportunities have emerged. People ready to be automation engineers who design automated systems, and technicians who build systems based on the designs are critical links from the present to manufacturing's future.

Yet, there are concerns. Workers who are qualified to install the systems or troubleshoot them are in short supply. If a new generation of workers isn't properly trained, then having the latest tools in robotics, machine vision, and motion control will have limited benefit.

Exciting employment opportunities are opening up, but can industrial manufacturers and educators rise to the challenge?

The Reality

Business owners and company reps are busy making and selling their own products. Integrators that install automated systems are busy showing their clients how to set up and run the equipment.

When new positions open up and they turn to interview college graduates, the results can be disappointing.

A study by Deloitte and the Manufacturing Institute revealed that it takes three months to find qualified workers. The report, The skills gap in manufacturing: 2015 and beyond, is their third such study and states that 3 ½ million manufacturing jobs will need filled in the next decade. Up to 2 million of those jobs could be left vacant.

Today's students are closely connected to personal technology like smartphones and video games, yet a gap exists between school and the workplace. There are critics of the Skills Gap study but a separate article in the Harvard Business Review, Employers Aren't Just Whining – the Skills Gap is Real, states that employers have trouble hiring workers to deal with new technologies because "new technologies frequently require specific new skills that schools don’t teach and that labor markets don’t supply."

Linking Industry and Education

Companies that take time to share their current and future employment needs with local colleges

and universities are making a strategic use of time and are investing in manufacturing's future.

Discussions between industry, community colleges, and universities can shape curriculum. This prepares students for job openings and reduces the training time and costs of employers.

Developing skills in one part of industrial automation, like machine vision, is a specific need that vocational educators can target.

Intelligrated is an integrator with headquarters in Ohio and has manufacturing facilities in Missouri and Kentucky. The company is an integrator certified by the Robotics Industries Association (RIA).

The firm's Vice President of Product Development and Manufacturing Systems, Matt Wicks, sits on a corporate development council at the Missouri University of Science and Technology. The position allows him to give feedback on industry needs and that can impact how students are trained.

"Basic computer vision has been applied in the material handling field for awhile, but we’re seeing more advanced types of solutions,” said Wicks, quoted in the article Closing the Skills Gap in Automation: Closing the Gap. “We provide that feedback to the university and then also look at recruiting those types of resources to solve problems we haven’t been able to solve before."

Intelligrated is primarily looking for four-year, master’s and PhD candidates, according to Wicks. Many industrial employers recognize a need for both two-year and four-year programs depending on the automation skill sets needed.

Some are arguing that a leap in economic growth will come from community colleges and not universities.

Applied Manufacturing Technologies (AMT) is an RIA Certified Robot Integrator based in Orion, Michigan. AMT recruits from both community colleges and universities. It specializes in robotic automation engineering and integration for material handling, machine tending, assembly, and welding applications.

Automation engineers will typically have four-year degrees and they see the Big Picture to make automation possible. They're well versed in electronics, the control system, the robots, the mechanical design and some of the software tools that are used in automation.

“[Students] from a community college, may be well-versed in one of those disciplines,” said Diane Haig, the CKO for AMT. She was also quoted in Closing the Skills Gap in Automation. “We’ve had people start from the two-year program and develop very quickly and work their way into automation engineer positions.”

Maybe your company can help shape vocational education and university level programs in your

area. Effective engineering programs will train students to innovate, design and create good options for applying technology to solve problems. Well-trained technicians will confidently build the fixtures, wire the PLC, program the robots, assemble them and install them.

Stay informed on trends in industrial automation and the impact on your business. Visit A3 for links to the resources and knowledge you need.